Support the Volunteer Center |
 |
| Ways to Give | Why support the Volunteer Center? | Donor Recognition | Our Supportors |
|
Give directly to the Volunteer Center Volunteer Center of Greater Kalamazoo If you would prefer, you can also pay by credit card over the phone by calling: 269-382-8350, Mon-Fri [8:30-5:00pm]. To learn more about donor recognition, please click here. |
Volunteer Center of Greater Kalamazoo
 Program Services Management & General Fundraising Programs & Services Include:
*Income uses July 1 2007 - June 30, 2008; 2008 Annual Report
|
|
 |
Give to the Volunteer Center Endowment Your gift to an endowment fund may be eligible for a state income tax credit of up to 50 percent (maximum credit: $100 for individuals who contribute $200 or more; maximum credit: $200 for married couples who contribute $400 or more). This gift to the Volunteer Center George Romney Endowment Fund is a gift component fund of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation. Becuase the Community Foundation has exclusive legal control over the contributed assets, your gift is subject to the Community Foundation's authority to redirect donations received to another beneficiary without approval if the purpose of the fund is deemed no longer widely beneficial or necessary, incapable of fulfillment, or inconsistent with the charitable needs of the community. |
||
 |
Give by searching or shopping |
||
 |
|||
| back to top |
Why support the Volunteer Center?
Read about some of our 2008 Accomplishments
For many in our community this past year has been one of great uncertainty. Worries about today have often outweighed thoughts of tomorrow as people have lost jobs, homes, and hope. Fortunately, we live in a community that cares about others. That care is demonstrated each day through the efforts of thousands of volunteers who work with their hands and hearts to improve the quality of life for everyone in the community.
Connecting good people and good causes is what the Volunteer Center does everyday. We serve nonprofits that are serving the greater good by feeding the homeless, mentoring youth, promoting the arts, caring for animals, and much more. Nonprofits cannot carry out their good work without dedicated volunteers, and the Volunteer Center's website is a vital resource for recruiting volunteers. Last year more than 8,000 volunteers made a decision to volunteer for one or more of the hundreds of opportunities listed at www.volunteerkalamazoo.org. Our website continues to attract new volunteers, with more than 1,500 people viewing current opportunities each month.
Volunteer Cathy Smith found our website was a great way to learn about service opportunities, and get connected to her new community after moving to Kalamazoo from Indiana. "We've always been active volunteers and the Volunteer Center's website provided a great way for my family and me to quickly feel like a part of the community." Cathy's teen daughters joined hundreds of other area youth and found volunteer opportunities through our VolunTEENS program. The summer program introduces youth ages 13-18 to volunteering, and this year participants reported volunteering 2,864 hours at area nonprofit organizations.
To help nonprofits build a stronger volunteer workforce, we provided consulting and training services to more than 120 staff and volunteer workers at area agencies. Whether large or small, nonprofit organizations face ongoing challenges in recruiting qualified volunteers and building the strength of their volunteer programs. Barb Fish, Director of Senior Wellness & Volunteer Management at Heritage Community of Kalamazoo attended our Volunteer Management Essentials training program and says, "The Volunteer Center is like the library of Volunteer Management. It's where I go to get my questions answered. I’m learning as I work and attending their workshops helped me gain the experience that I need to build and improve our volunteer programs. I don't know what I would have done without their guidance and support. The recruitment service is amazing. We place 90+ volunteers per year at five different sites so recruitment is critical for us. Each week I get five or more new volunteer referrals from the Volunteer Center's website, so I know it works. It's a wonderful support service."
Our 2008 STAR (Sharing Time And Resources) Award program was a highlight of the year. For more than twenty years the Volunteer Center and Kalamazoo Gazette have celebrated the spirit of volunteerism and service throughout our community at an annual breakfast that recognizes individuals and groups in twelve categories. The 2008 nominees included 2,981 individuals and groups who collectively volunteered 101,100 hours of their time, which has an equivalent dollar value of more than $1,900,000.
As we continued to evaluate our programs and the needs of the community it has become became apparent that many nonprofit organizations are struggling to recruit and retain qualified board members to lead their organizations. Our newest program, BoardConnect® Southwest Michigan, was developed and introduced in August 2008 to address this need. BoardConnect offers training programs to prepare individuals interested in serving on nonprofit boards, and to strengthen the skills of existing nonprofit board members. An online matching service connects individuals and organizations by skills, interests, and mission.
The Volunteer Center is committed to continuing its valuable work promoting volunteerism and working with nonprofits to build their capacity through effective programs. When the story of these times in Kalamazoo gets written, we will think of our volunteers and surely say, "We did all we could, and it was more than anyone could have imagined."
Special Thanks to our Donors!
The Volunteer Center depends on funding from a variety of sources in order to maintain and improve the quality of programs and services we provide. This includes corporate and foundation grants, sponsorships of programs and events, and partnerships of varying kinds. We thank the many individuals, families & groups that support the Center with direct monetary donations. These solicited and unsolicited contributions are invaluable to sustain the work the Center does for the community at large.
Donors listed below occur during fiscal year ending June 30, 2009, except for event and special program sponsors which correspond to the most recent event or special program.
To view our event and special program sponsors click the links below:
| Board Connect Sponsors | Golf Outing Sponsors | Grape Expectations Sponsors | STAR Awards Sponsors |
Leadership Circle Greater Kalamazoo United Way Kalamazoo Junior Women's Club Jerry & Betty Mason Schupan and Sons, Inc.
Community Circle Ladies Library Associaton Steve Doorlag Ronda Stryker Christopher & Elizabeth Sizemore
Circle of Friends Omar Abudayyeh Diana Algra Ann & Mark Austin Carol Bailey-Pellowe Julie Betzler Bingen & Associates, PLLC Norm Braksick Steven Brown Anne Busch Phil & Joan Carey Derek Chism Nina Consolatti N. Warn & Jean Courtney John Dalton Carol Elam Tamica Frison Tom Geving Jennifer Greenman Ellen Harrington Jim Houston Katherine Houston |
Circle of Friends (continued) Kelley Howard Matthew Hunt Ed & Judy Huth Joan Jaconette Linda Lawton Michael & Ann MacCreery Terry Martin Prudence D. McCabe Theresa & Tony McDonnell Carolyn Mesara Geoff Miller Karen Morse George Nielsen Sue Oole Laurel Palmer Deb Seeley Leigh Schultz Kim Shook Alistair and Mary Smith Jamie Sorn Katie Swartz Christopher A. Terkos Doug & Penny Thompson Dick & Betty VanderMolen Robert & Katherine Van Dis Nicole Warner Lenora Webster Paul & Linda Wienir Libby & Michael Ziemelis |
In Honor Of... Jim Houston Linda Lawton
In-Kind Allegra Print & Imaging Post-Up Stand, Inc River Run Press Strategic Solutions
Grants & Foundations Donald & Ann Parfet Family Foundation Irving S. Gilmore Foundation Kalamazoo Community Foundation Molitor Family Foundation NEW Nonprofit Alliance Volunteer Centers of Michigan W.K. Kellogg Foundation |
|
| back to top | |||